Ron DeSantis was right to go to war with Disney, majority of Republican debate watchers say in Ny Breaking poll

About 55 percent of viewers watching Wednesday night’s third Republican debate sided with Ron DeSantis in his war against Disney, according to an exclusive poll for DailyMail.com.

Florida’s governor has drawn criticism for attacking his state’s largest private employer and ending its home rule status as part of his crusade against “woke” values.

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who is running against DeSantis for the 2024 Republican nomination, said her state would welcome Disney’s jobs if he didn’t want them.

But a poll of 544 debate viewers conducted by JL Partners found that 33 percent sided with Haley and a clear majority supported DeSantis.

It comes after analysts suggested DeSantis’ focus on waging “war on woke” could hurt his campaign.

Florida’s governor has drawn criticism for attacking his state’s largest private employer and ending its home rule status as part of his crusade against “woke” values.

James Johnson, co-founder of JL Partners, said: “The wise might have decided that Disney had sunk DeSantis.

“But this poll shows that you can never be too anti-woke for the average Republican primary.

“If DeSantis’ campaign has encountered difficulties, it is because of Trump’s dominance and his overall performance — not because of the governor’s scandal with Disney.”

Former President Donald Trump has a commanding lead in the nomination race. He has a 44-point lead over DeSantis, according to a RealClearPolitics moving average.

With little to gain from sharing a stage with the rest of the field, he stayed away from the third Republican debate in Miami on Wednesday night.

Both DeSantis and Haley performed well in the eyes of experts, but it was the Florida governor who came out on top according to viewers.

Disney was not present, but the two have talked about the company since DeSantis turned his ire on Mickey Mouse and friends.

It started last year when the company publicly opposed a state law that banned schools from teaching gender identity and sexual orientation classes in elementary grades.

Opponents called it the “don’t say gay” law.

Disney and Florida are now embroiled in battles in federal and state courts following DeSantis’ attempt to take control of the Orlando theme park tax district

Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis clashed over China, abortion and fracking. As Haley became embroiled in battles with other candidates, viewers said the Florida governor was more “presidential.”

DeSantis defeated Haley out of sight Wednesday night in the third Republican presidential debate, according to an exclusive DailyMail.com poll of viewers.

The entertainment giant said the law should never have been signed and vowed to fight for its repeal.

At the time, Disney was one of several companies granted its own special tax district, allowing it to build roads, buildings and provide services without seeking permission from a provincial government.

DeSantis terminated the agreement earlier this year.

“Allowing a company to control its own government is bad policy, especially when the company makes decisions that affect an entire region,” he said in February.

“This legislation ends Disney’s self-governing status, ensures that Disney lives under the same laws as everyone else, and ensures that Disney pays its debts and its fair share of taxes.”

Disney said ending his special status was a simple act of retaliation for his position and initiated legal action against DeSantis.

The lawsuit against DeSantis was initiated after he stripped the former Reedy Creek Improvement District, now known as the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, of the special privileges it had received decades earlier

Republican presidential candidate Florida Governor Ron DeSantis holds his daughter Madison as he walks next to his wife Casey DeSantis

And it scrapped plans for a new campus in central Florida for 2,000 employees.

Haley saw it as an opportunity to poke DeSantis, boldly suggesting on Twitter that the company’s 70,000 employees would be welcome in its home state if it wanted to leave Florida altogether.

“We have great weather, great people, and it’s always a great day in South Carolina,” she said. “SC isn’t awake yet, but we’re not hypocritical about it either.”

With Haley gaining ground in the recent polls, DeSantis has kept their feud alive during his stump speeches.

“Nikki Haley sided with Disney over Florida and over our children,” he said in Iowa last week. ‘Sorry, that’s a disqualification.

“If you bend the knee to every major company and don’t stand up and fight, you’re not going to get the job done.”

Still, he said in August that he and his allies had “in fact moved on” from fighting Disney as he urged Disney to drop the lawsuit.

“I’d say go back to what you did well,” he said CNBC. “I think this will be the right business decision and all that.”